Business Corpus: Magic Leap's First Augmented-Reality Glasses Get Underwhelming ReviewsThe first augmented-reality glasses from hot startup Magic Leap are now shipping to customers, but early reviews say the AR specs have a long way to go before they become a mainstream consumer product. The post Magic Leap's First Augmented-Reality Glasses Get Underwhelming Reviews appeared first on Investor's Business Daily.

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The first augmented-reality glasses from hot startup Magic Leap are now shipping to customers, but early reviews say the AR specs have a long way to go before they become a mainstream consumer product.

The glasses, called Magic Leap One, cost $2,295 and are being sold to early adopters in six major U.S. cities. The privately held Plantation, Fla.-based company is pitching its first AR system as its Creator Edition because it is designed for software developers who want to make games and other apps on the new augmented-reality platform.

Magic Leap officials are setting low expectations for the device, saying it provides just a glimpse of where the technology is headed.

"This is our Apple-1, not our iPhone X moment," Magic Leap founder and Chief Executive Rony Abovitz told Variety. "This is the very first step of what we are doing. We're being heads down and modest about what we'll do next."

Magic Leap Two On The Way

The consumer version of the product will be Magic Leap Two, Abovitz said. That second-generation product will include support for AT&T's (T) 5G wireless network and get a broader marketing push, he said. Abovitz declined to say when the follow-on version might launch or how much it will cost.

"Let's focus on Magic Leap One Creator Edition," he told Variety. "We just launched it and we're in early orbit. This is our Alan Shepard, John Glenn moment. Then we'll talk to you about Gemini."

Apple (AAPL), Alphabet's (GOOGL) Google, Microsoft (MSFT) and a host of tech companies are pursuing augmented reality because they see it as the next stage of personal computing. Augmented reality overlays digital imagery and information onto what a person sees in the real world.

The Verge reviewed Magic Leap One and said it showed promise but "is still very much a work in progress."

CNBC said the technology is impressive but "we're years away from the Magic Leap that's ready for the rest of us."

Limited Field Of View

Complaints about the first-generation product include its limited field of view and bulky headset. The device can't project digital information across your entire field of view, only a moderately sized rectangle in the center of your vision.

In a blog post, Mike Boland, chief analyst at ARtillry Intelligence, said Magic Leap One could turn out to be "the Palm Pilot on the way towards the iPhone."

Magic Leap One consists of three components: a headset, a handheld controller and a small wearable computer. The system is powered by Nvidia (NVDA) graphics and central processors. The product officially launched on Wednesday.

The company has raised more than $2.3 billion in funding from the likes of Alibaba (BABA), AT&T, Fidelity, Google, JPMorgan (JPM) and Qualcomm (QCOM).

The post Magic Leap's First Augmented-Reality Glasses Get Underwhelming Reviews appeared first on Investor's Business Daily.